In 2007, Gwendolyn Sontheim founded Feeding San Diego, which distributes 35 million meals annually. PHOTO BY AMANDA SCHROEDER
On its 15th anniversary, Feeding San Diego (feedingsandiego.org) founder and board chair Gwendolyn Sontheim discusses how the organization has been battling the hunger problem.
What inspired you to found Feeding San Diego? The basic premise behind Feeding San Diego is that we needed to have an organization whose primary job was feeding people. Providing nutritious food at no cost to people shows them that someone cares and they matter. Having a safe space to access nutritious food is life changing.
How has Feeding San Diego grown over the years since 2007? We’ve come a long way since our first distribution, which was held in the San Diego Rescue Mission parking lot. We had two employees and no warehouse. It wasn’t a huge distribution, but it was a huge success to get started. Subsequently, the fires broke out a few weeks later, and because of our connection with Feeding America, we accessed over 500,000 pounds of food that were distributed out of the parking lot at Jack Murphy Stadium. We had so much more we wanted to do, so we kept growing. We now distribute 35 million meals every year and have nearly 100 employees.
What would surprise people about hunger and food insecurity in San Diego? It’s common for people to think that the only people who need help with food are the unhoused, or very low-income, when, in fact, it’s a lot of families where both parents work—sometimes multiple jobs—and they are housed, but they’re still facing impossible choices between buying groceries and paying bills or buying medicine.
What does Feeding San Diego’s 15th anniversary mean to you? It means that the idea we had 15 years ago was not only viable, it was needed. We are successful because we have made a difference. As an integral part of our community, we have had a lasting effect. Earlier this year, Mayor Todd Gloria came to Feeding San Diego’s headquarters in Sorrento Valley to proclaim May 22 as Feeding San Diego’s 15th Anniversary Day. That was a proud moment to bring many of our stakeholders together to celebrate the occasion.
Which initiatives is Feeding San Diego currently focused on? With our purchasing power, we can transform every $1 donated into two nutritious meals for our neighbors. This year, we are working on growing our produce pantry program; expanding our school pantry to more local schools; growing our food rescue program in response to a new California law that requires businesses to donate edible food; and continuing the Together Tour, drive-through food distributions around the county that serve thousands of households every month.
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